https://ejournals.vdu.lt/index.php/istorijoszurnalas/issue/feed History / Istorija 2025-06-29T12:48:59+03:00 Dr. Mindaugas Nefas mindaugas.nefas@vdu.lt Open Journal Systems <p><strong>eISSN</strong> 2029–7181, <strong>ISSN</strong> 1392–0456, <strong>DOI </strong><a href="https://doi.org/10.15823/istorija" target="_blank" rel="noopener">10.15823/istorija</a><br /><strong>First Published:</strong> 1958–<br /><strong>Frequency:</strong> Quarterly<br /><strong>Languages:</strong> English, Lithuanian<br /><strong>Subjects:</strong> History<br /><strong>Metrics:</strong> WoS: JIF 0.1 (2022), Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI)<br /><strong>Fees:</strong> No Publication Fees<br /><strong>Open Access:</strong> CC BY SA</p> https://ejournals.vdu.lt/index.php/istorijoszurnalas/article/view/7576 Uniate Convents in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the Early Modern Period 2025-06-28T19:47:02+03:00 Oleh Dukh olko.duch@gmail.com <p>The article focuses on the development of the network of convents (female monasteries) in the Kyivan Uniate Metropolitanate from the time of the Union of Brest (1596) to the first half of the 19th century. The first communities of Uniate nuns appeared within the Grand Duchy of Lithuania at the beginning of the 17th century. Unlike the men, they were not united in a single Order but were subordinated to the local bishop. The second half of the 17th century, with its almost continuous wars and internal conflicts in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, negatively impacted the development of monastic communities. Favourable circumstances for the Uniate Church and its monasticism emerged only in the late 17th and 18th centuries. During this period, three eparchies (dioceses) of the Kyivan Orthodox Metropolitanate joined the Union. Along with the bishops, numerous monastic communities located in these areas accepted the Union. However, between the 1730s and 1760s, there was a gradual dissolution of small convents. One of the main reasons for this was the implementation of the decisions of the Synod of Zamość (1720). The suppression of the Uniate female communities after the three partitions of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth was continued by the Russian authorities, albeit for different reasons. At the end of the 18th century and in the first half of the 19th century, all convents in the Russian Empire were suppressed.</p> 2025-06-29T00:00:00+03:00 Copyright (c) 2025 History / Istorija https://ejournals.vdu.lt/index.php/istorijoszurnalas/article/view/7577 Foundations of Basilian Monasteries in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the 17th Century 2025-06-28T19:56:24+03:00 Dorota Wereda dorota.wereda@uws.edu.pl <p>A breakthrough event in the history of the Eastern Churches in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth was the synod held in Brest in 1596, as a result of which a religious community was established that recognised the authority of the papacy. The Basilian Order, reformed in 1617 and establishing the Lithuanian Basilian Province of the Holy Trinity, was able to be a helpful environment in implementing the idea. In this article, I present the places and circumstances of the foundation of 37 Basilian monasteries in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the 17th century and their founders. I analyse the political environments of the founders and the influence of the policy of the rulers of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth on the dynamics of the foundations. I present the territorial conditions of monastic foundations. The results of the analyses showed the decisive role of the religious policy implemented by the monarchs in the 17th century.</p> 2025-06-29T00:00:00+03:00 Copyright (c) 2025 History / Istorija https://ejournals.vdu.lt/index.php/istorijoszurnalas/article/view/7578 Benedictine Abbey in Senieji Trakai – Specifics of Functioning 2025-06-28T20:04:45+03:00 Iwona Pietrzkiewicz iwona.pietrzkiewicz@uken.krakow.pl <p>The Benedictine Abbey in Senieji Trakai is one of the oldest monastic foundations in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, established as early as the beginning of the 15th century. For hundreds of years it has preserved the characteristics typical of St Benedict’s spirituality (contemplative life, asceticism, officium divinum), but had to adapt to local requirements. The most important issue was the running of the parish. Hence the development of pastoral ministry, preaching, the widespread administration of the sacraments, the promotion of devotion to the Virgin Mary and the running of the Confraternity of the Holy Scapular. Despite periodic difficulties, it maintained an adequate spiritual and intellectual level, but also fostered religious culture and had an educational role in the immediate environment.</p> 2025-06-29T00:00:00+03:00 Copyright (c) 2025 History / Istorija https://ejournals.vdu.lt/index.php/istorijoszurnalas/article/view/7580 Kaunas Dominicans – Chaplains of Kaunas Benedictine Nuns in the 17th–19th Centuries 2025-06-29T11:20:44+03:00 Vaida Kamuntavičienė vaida.kamuntaviciene@vdu.lt <p>The article analyses who were the chaplains of the Kaunas Benedictine nunnery, founded in 1624, and reveals the role of the Bishop of Vilnius in appointing chaplains and confessors. The research allowed to find out the clergy who participated in the ceremony of the perpetual vows of Kaunas Benedictines. The study showed that the most frequent persons to serve as confessors of the Kaunas Benedictines were the parson of the parish church in Kaunas, the priest of the Church of the Holy Cross in Kaunas, or the Kaunas Dominicans. Some Jesuits, Bernardines, Augustinians, and Discalced Carmelite monks were also occasionally Benedictine confessors. The article shows the relations between various Kaunas clergy.</p> 2025-06-29T00:00:00+03:00 Copyright (c) 2025 History / Istorija https://ejournals.vdu.lt/index.php/istorijoszurnalas/article/view/7581 “Loué soit le très-saint Sacrement” – Monastic Life in the Eighteenth-century Benedictine Monastery in Warsaw in Light of the Correspondence of Maria Augustyna Radziwiłł 2025-06-29T11:29:53+03:00 Anna Penkała-Jastrzębska anna.penkala-jastrzebska@uken.krakow.pl <p>The study presented here deals with the peculiarities of the functioning of the order The Benedictine Nuns of Perpetual Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament in the 18th century. The Sacramental Nuns led a simple, modest life based on a constant rhythm of adoration. Their rule was based on essentially the same principle as that of other Benedictine orders. In view of the fact that most of the historical sources concerning the functioning of the congregation in the 18th century have been destroyed, of particular importance is the found private correspondence of one of the prioress of the order – Maria Augustyna Radziwiłł. Her correspondence (found in The Central Archives of Historical Records in Warsaw) has not previously been analysed by researchers, hence its potential for use in recognising the presented issue is enormous. The aim of the research was to determine what daily life was like in the order during the times of King August III Wettin and Stanislaw August Poniatowski. Of particular importance is the analysis of the economic condition of the monastery, relations with benefactors, the standard of living of the nuns and the implementation of the foundation act. The presented findings are part of a broader current of research on monastic life in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the 18th century.</p> 2025-06-29T00:00:00+03:00 Copyright (c) 2025 History / Istorija https://ejournals.vdu.lt/index.php/istorijoszurnalas/article/view/7582 Justyna (Euphemia) Szaniawska – Abbess of the Nesvizh Benedictine Monastery in the 18th Century 2025-06-29T11:36:54+03:00 Jarosław Pietrzak jaroslaw.pietrzak@uken.krakow.pl <p>The work presents the figure of a unique abbess of the Benedictine monastery in Nesvizh – Euphemia Szaniawska. During her tenure from 1758 to 1799, the abbess had to face a number of problems, including disputes over monastic property, serfs and pledges. Regardless, she was an efficient organiser. As a result, this allowed for the expansion of the monastery buildings, renovation works and the foundation of new temples. The work also shows the abbess’s relationship with her protectors – the Radziwiłł princes, which was related to the existence of the monastery and even its reaction to the most important political events at the end of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.</p> 2025-06-29T00:00:00+03:00 Copyright (c) 2025 History / Istorija https://ejournals.vdu.lt/index.php/istorijoszurnalas/article/view/7583 Donating Food to a Monastery: Gift and Communication 2025-06-29T11:42:28+03:00 Rimvydas Laužikas rimvydas.lauzikas@kf.vu.lt <p>The article focuses on the study of food donations at the rural Dominican Monastery in Lithuania. The theoretical framework applied perceives donations not only as the transfer of goods but also as a process of information transmission. In this process, the donor is the sender of the message; the gift becomes the message; the act of giving is the channel of communication; and the recipient of the gift is the receiver of the message. The article presents the gastronomic culture of the Monastery and a classification of the possible communicative meanings of food donations. Gifts of care, gratitude, connection, and joy are identified in the Monastery’s donation book. According to the donation book, these donations differ in terms of the types of food donated, the frequency of donations, and the social profiles of the donors.</p> 2025-06-29T00:00:00+03:00 Copyright (c) 2025 History / Istorija https://ejournals.vdu.lt/index.php/istorijoszurnalas/article/view/7585 Aprėpęs visą epochą 2025-06-29T12:05:12+03:00 Darius Kučinskas darius.kucinskas@ktu.lt 2025-06-29T00:00:00+03:00 Copyright (c) 2025 History / Istorija https://ejournals.vdu.lt/index.php/istorijoszurnalas/article/view/6892 Plan of the Boundaries of the Kamardė Manor Estate (1770) 2025-03-06T14:11:19+02:00 Ernestas Vasiliauskas ernestas@inbox.lv Valda Kvaskova vkvaskova@gmail.com <p>The article for the first time publishes and analyses the plans of the disputed boundaries of the estate of Kamarde Manor in 1770. It explains the circumstances of the document’s compilation and archiving. It localises the objects marked on the plans and analyses the change of the manor’s owners (the von Grotthuss family).</p> 2025-06-29T00:00:00+03:00 Copyright (c) 2025 History / Istorija https://ejournals.vdu.lt/index.php/istorijoszurnalas/article/view/7586 Review of the International Scientific Conference “Monastic Life in Lithuania: History and Perspectives” Dedicated to the 400th Anniversary of the Foundation of the Benedictine Monastery in Kaunas 2025-06-29T12:09:57+03:00 Ričardas Jaramičius ricardas.jaramicius@vdu.lt 2025-06-29T00:00:00+03:00 Copyright (c) 2025 History / Istorija